9/5/1934 – 12/28/2016
Donald Eugene Blazek was born on September 5, 1934 to Viola and John Blazek. He had two brothers, John and Duane who have predeceased him and a sister, Joyce. He also had an uncle by marriage, Paul Jakopovic, that he loved like a brother. As a young child, Don was precocious and very inquisitive about how things worked. He was mechanically inclined and enjoyed working with his father. While he grew up in a family with modest means during the Great Depression, Dad was enterprising and resourceful. He started working at a very young age and really didn’t “retire” until he was well into his 70’s. Throughout his life, dad worked a variety of jobs and owned many businesses selling things, mostly centered around the automobile industry. He was an avid collector – of many things, maybe everything!
Dad married our mom, Bonnie Bigelow, in 1954 and they had three children: My brothers, Don Junior and Ron, and me. The young couple bought 40 acres close to dad’s parents in Bennington, NE in the 1960’s and cleared the land, moved a house and renovated it. For many years, dad farmed and worked various jobs while mom focused on raising my brothers and I and working for the school system. There were always things that needed to be done, so like other farm families, there were chores. Sometimes it was hay, but many times as a family we would “walk beans” starting at the crack of dawn. We took jugs of frozen tea with us to the field. It was always 4 down, 4 back. One of us was usually talking about “tea time”, which meant we could distract dad long enough to rest and sip the tea that had melted. It was really just a break from pulling weeds, or in my case, pulling the tops off so no one could see them. My dad loved to tease about that.
Dad enjoyed inventing things and was recognized in the Omaha World Herald for inventing a potato digger. He also loved to cut firewood. My brothers would go and split wood with dad and they didn’t even use a fireplace! Dad designed several log splitters over the years that have split hundreds of cords of wood heating the homes of family and friends. He loved to split wood with my brothers and me, his son in-law (Matt), his grandsons and also with his cousin, Jim Blazek and Jim’s sons Paul and Michael. Jim and his family members have been extremely kind to Dad over the years and their love and friendship meant a great deal to him. As did their help splitting wood! One thing about splitting with dad in recent years was that he had some issues with his eyes and his hearing. So if you were the one loading the logs or unloading the wood after it was split, you’d better be wearing steel toed boots.
Dad loved to tinker with things. He loved taking things apart to see how they worked and then put them back together. He left a note behind that I found not too long ago talking about how hard it was to not be able to fix things in recent years. With the advancement of technology, he struggled to understand how the wireless cable television worked, or why flashlights came with circuit boards. But whenever we worked on anything, he always wanted to watch and have us show him how we were doing something. Always inquisitive always interested in learning.
In his later years, Dad loved to tell stories about his parents and his brothers and he would visit his sister as often as he could. He recalled fondly his love and respect for his father and mother, and often shared a time when he talked back to his dad after spending the day on a tractor and having to walk home. I’m not sure if he did that to keep me in line or just to share a memory of his dad. While Dad could be very opinionated especially to those closest to him, he also had a soft heart and could be very kind. He was always a contradiction in motion. He was the type of person that never met an argument he didn’t like, yet if you didn’t agree with him, he would tell you to stop arguing!
Dad was very proud of the fact that he was the oldest living Blazek male, and it was very difficult for him to go from being the patriarch in control, to having others help him with everyday tasks and errands. He would often remark that if he had known he was going to live this long he would have taken better care of his body. However, we are not quite sure if that would have happened because he was known for doing what he wanted when he wanted. Again, a contradiction.
During the last couple of years, dad had some health issues and came to live with us as he required help with keeping on track with medications, and every-day tasks. He had a huge variety of people come and visit him. He always liked having pop, chocolate candy or pie ready to share with his visitors, and enjoyed when people would stay to talk with him. During the winters, he loved building a really warm fire, and took pride in the fact that he was helping us save money on our propane bill. I still have a picture on my phone to show that our thermostat was set to 65, it was 71 outside but 80 degrees in the house…. and it was Spring!
During this time, we lovingly started to refer to dad as “the Bear”. If you ever had to wake him from a sound sleep, it would remind you of a grizzly rousing out of a winter hibernation and being a bit cranky. But, also like a bear, he could be fiercely protective and worry about your safety. When my brothers and I were shingling his roof a few years ago, I was getting ready to climb up the ladder to help, and he told me I couldn’t do that. When I asked him why, he said he didn’t want me to get hurt. I guess I have just enough of my dad in me that I took one look at him and one at the ladder, and thought, “challenge accepted” and it was up to the roof I went! I’m not sure he cared much for my sass, but I’m sure he appreciated my brothers, his son-in-law, grandchildren and me getting the job completed.
Another one of my dad’s favorite things to do was go out to a restaurant and share a meal and conversation with others. Years ago, he loved to go to the New Tower to see his Uncle Frank and cousin Skip. In recent years, he loved going to Cubby’s for breakfast, to Anthony’s for lunch, and The Warehouse for pizza – lunch or dinner, didn’t matter. One of his saddest times was when they closed down the Bohemian Café. He was proud of his Czech heritage and his ancestry, and hated to see that icon no longer exist.
Dad had many wonderful healthcare professionals that looked after him and took his frequent phone calls over the years. Among them are The Bergan Heart Clinic with Julie Thompson and Dr. Bodnar, Dr. Anthony Saquetaon, Dr. Steve Hoody, who recently passed away, Dr. Paul Bacino, and Dr. Ed Shima. Our family greatly appreciates the many nurses, and OT/PT’s that made home visits each week from Nebraska Home Health Care to give Dad a bath and check on his vitals and help him keep up his strength.
Dad is survived by his sons, Don Jr.(Ardi), and Ron (Lori), and his daughter Connie (Matt), and his former wife, Bonnie; his sister Joyce, 11 grandchildren (Christi and Dan Dougherty; Dr. Nicole Blazek and Steven Harvey, Jr.; Michael Blazek and Brandi Rettenmeier; Sam Blazek and Haley Suddick: Connor and Else Bailey; Jillian Bailey; Daniel and Kari Blazek; Andrew and Jenni Blazek: Jessica and Kevin Andersen; Matthew and Tayler Wickham; Michael Wickham and Natalie Hackbarth) and 5 great grandchildren (Olivia and Gracie Dougherty; Phoenix and Axl Blazek and Evelyn Andersen), and his Aunt, Rose Blazek. He also has numerous nieces and nephews and cousins, and friends.
Early on in his life, Dad was an active member of the Bohemian Brethren Church and had been a deacon and elder. More recently, we often tried to get him to attend church services and he declined. However, when someone close to him was facing a health issue or problem, he often said that he would include them in his prayers. I know that if Heaven has a woodpile, that Dad is there wishing he could have figured out a way to have brought his splitter with him.
We love you and will miss you, dad. You left a wonderful legacy with your children, grandchildren and great grandchildren. My wish is that every time we see a fire, we remember you warmly and the torch you carried on this Earth now be passed to each of us to make a difference in the world.
Memorial Service 11:00 AM Saturday (12/31/16) at Presbyterian Church of The Master 10710 Corby Circle Omaha, Nebraska
Memorials cane be made to Bennington Fire & Rescue
